Childhood
by Frisco
Summary: Missing scene from Echoes. A glimpse of Radek and Ronon's camping trip. Written for Scars Challenge on the sga flashfic community.


Ronon knelt at the edge of the clear creek and took a moment to scan the dense foliage on the far bank. Nothing. He sighed as he scooped up the cool water with both hands and splashed it on his face. It had sounded like such a good idea at the time. Even though he had grown up in the city, the one positive that had come from his years as a runner was his love for the outdoors. Well, that and his tracking ability. He had honed that until it was wickedly sharp. However, over the past year and a half on Atlantis, he could feel that knife-edge dulling. So when Sheppard announced he needed a volunteer to escort Dr. Zelenka to the mainland overnight, he had jumped at the chance. The thought of practicing his tracking on some of the animals the Athosians had reported as native to this planet had thrilled him. He needed a way to stay sharp.

What had he been thinking? If there had been any wildlife in the area, that little man and his stupid machines had scared them away. He had hunted for hours without catching the smallest hint of activity. He had considered shooting Zelenka in retribution but decided that Sheppard and Weir might not appreciate that.

He cupped more water in his hands and took a long drink while staying alert to movement and sound. The water felt so good that he impulsively pulled his shirt over his head and poured water over his shoulders and back. He contemplated a dip in the creek but dismissed the idea since it wasn't an advantageous position to be in if some danger did occur. It was still his responsibility after all to protect the doc… who was now crashing through the brush toward the creek. Ronon sighed again. Stealth was definitely not in the scientist's vocabulary. He lowered his head and splashed some more water down his back.

He could feel Zelenka's eyes on him as the scientist emerged from the vegetation. His hand paused for a moment over the scars on his back from the Wraith tracking device. Well, nothing he could do about that. Most people stared if they ever saw them, but it didn't do any good to worry about things he couldn't change. "Come on up, Doc. I was just finishing."

Zelenka moved forward and knelt next to him. He stuck a finger in the water and then dunked his whole face in it. Ronon shook his head. Not only not stealthy, but not even cautious. Anything or anyone could sneak up on him with his face buried in the water. Zelenka's head came up, and he wiped the water off his face and ran his hands through his hair. "Oh, that feels so good."

Ronon saw Radek's eyes flick his way before he self-consciously began removing his shirt. Ronon rolled his eyes. Not stealthy or cautious, but he was modest. He wouldn't last a minute in any military. And then he saw the scar on Zelenka's back – a huge scar that could only be the result of fire. The skin was puckered and discolored from the top of his left shoulder blade diagonally across his back ending just above his waist on the right side. Zelenka cupped some water in his hands and poured it over his chest and shoulders and then down his back. He never even glanced at Ronon.

"My brother burned down our house when I was a child. He had lit candles everywhere and fell asleep. Our parents were not home. I could not get him to awaken so I grabbed him and began dragging him out of the house. We were near the front door when the ceiling began to collapse. One of the beams fell across my back. I finally got the beam off and got us both out of the house. I didn't even realize the beam had been on fire until one of our neighbors came to help." Radek shrugged a shoulder. "We were very poor, too poor to afford a doctor. My mother did her best to tend to the burn, and it eventually healed, but it is very unsightly, no?" Radek looked a bit embarrassed as he buttoned up his shirt.

"No, Doc. Wear that scar proudly. You earned it saving your brother's life. The only scar I have from my childhood is this one." Ronon pulled his dreadlocks aside to reveal a jagged scar along the base of his skull. "When I was 12, I picked the wrong girl to kiss. She punched me in the nose hard enough to knock me down. We were standing on the bank of a river, and I slid down into the water. I sliced the back of my head open on some rocks."

Zelenka squinted at him with skepticism. "Really?"

"Really, Doc."

Zelenka stood up, still looking unconvinced. "Well, I need to get back to my tests." He began walking back towards the camp site.

Ronon stared after him for a minute. Maybe there was more to the scientist than he had thought. He rubbed his hand across the scar on his neck and smiled as he thought of Gera. It had been a small price to pay for kissing the prettiest girl in his class. He stood and pulled his shirt back over his head. He was rather glad he hadn't shot Zelenka yesterday.

And then those damn machines started up again….

The End.


End file.
